Most Sales 2.0 dreck starts off saying ‘enterprise sales is dead’ or talks about ‘rapid sales cycles’ or ‘executive buyin’ – I mean, who are these guys kidding? The selling technique stuff they talk about is nothing new, rather just a repackaging of solution sales, strategic selling or smart account management (start with a small project and grow – I mean really, is this groundbreaking?). What is new is how the internet changes how you can connect with clients.

Those who are great at anything do the fundamentals well, and without apparent effort. Whether it’s a musician or a baseball player, they seem to be able to perform without focusing on all the individual actions that comprise their task. A great golfer knows to not think about the mechanics of the swing on the course, trusting that he/she has already grooved in the right mechanics. Instead, the focus of the top pros is the shot at hand, all the decision making at the moment is on where and how to move the ball towards the hole, not whether his left knee bends in the right direction, at the right moment.